VISAKHAPATNAM: Sahithi Varshini Moogi, a 19-year-old from Visakhapatnam, has completed all the requirements for the Woman Grandmaster title, securing her third and final WGM norm at an international tournament in Serbia in September 2026.
Her chess journey, which began at the age of around seven-and-a-half, has seen her win nine international medals, become an Asian Youth Champion and represent India at the 2022 Chess Olympiad.
For her family, an important part of her career has been the role played by her father. Lokeswararao left his profession to become her coach and has since devoted himself to her training and career.
Sahithi has earned several FIDE titles. She became a Woman Candidate Master (WCM) in 2017, Woman FIDE Master (WFM) in 2019, Woman International Master (WIM) in 2022 and FIDE Master (FM) in 2023.
Sahithi’s journey began after a difficult phase in her childhood. At six, she suffered severe dengue fever and was admitted to hospital. Her condition became critical. “Doctors told us they could not save her. But she recovered, and later the doctors said it was a miracle,” her father recalled while speaking to TNIE.
During her recovery, Sahithi began showing interest in chess. Her father, who had played chess while working at HPCL, was training Sahithi’s elder sister, Falguni. Sahithi used to watch them play and started playing on a mobile chess app.
One day, she showed her father a knight variation she had worked out. He was surprised that she had understood the idea behind the move and decided to train her.
Within six months, Sahithi won an Under-8 state title and qualified for the national championship. She finished 20th at the nationals, but the performance encouraged the family to continue supporting her. She later won a national silver medal and went on to make her mark at international age-category events. She became an Asian Youth Champion in the Under-10 and Under-12 categories and won the Commonwealth Under-10 girls’ gold medal. At the Asian Youth Chess Championships in Thailand, she won six medals.
Sahithi developed an attacking style of play and enjoys sharp positions. According to her father, she does not get intimidated by the reputation of her opponents. She admires Viswanathan Anand and Garry Kasparov and has also studied the games of former world champion Mikhail Tal.
By the age of 11, she had reached a rating of 2,070. She also defeated Grandmaster Daniel Vocatura, who had a rating of 2,620, at the Teplice Open. She had crossed a classical rating of 2,300 in 2022.
She also represented India at the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Chennai in 2022, where she was the youngest member of the Indian women’s team. That year, she won the Best Female Player award at the Magnus Chess Challenge and finished runner-up in the Best Female category at the Biel Grandmasters Tournament in Switzerland. She has defeated Grandmasters and International Masters in tournaments.
At the World Rapid Chess Championship in Samarkand in December 2023, she secured 13th place. Her father said she was the second-best Indian woman in the tournament after Humpy Koneru. Viswanathan Anand also praised her performance at the tournament.
Her family had to bear a financial burden to keep her career going. Her father said support from the Pravaha Foundation, the State government and HPCL was encouraging, but was not sufficient to enable her to participate continuously in international tournaments. “So we had to sell a flat and take several loans,” he said.
In 2026, Sahithi continued to compete internationally. At the Juraflore International Chess Tournament in France, she scored five points from nine rounds, defeated two International Masters and gained 30 rating points. She currently has a live classical rating of 2,324. Now an Inter first-year student at Sri Prakash College, Sahithi has already set her next target. Her father said she wants to reach the top 10 in the world and compete in the open section.